An interesting discussion occurred at work today, and prompted this post, it went along the lines of the dangers posed by gases released by a lead acid battery being charged, and one of the boys watching his
aunt, yes, his maiden aunt, have a look into a battery by the light of a match, resulting in a bit of a 'woof' sound and some quite un lady like expressions. Explosion, however, is not the only reason to charge a battery in a well ventilated area (& please, don't strike a match nearby!) I have seen good sets of tools/instruments and even an entire work table ruined by the escaping gases and aerosolized acid released during charging.
In the end I always placed batteries being charged inside a large shallow plastic tub on a table just inside the doorway of the workshop and prevented a lot of the damage that might otherwise have happened.
Had to have a bit of a laugh at Simmo's poor old aunt though...
... she was fine, only her pride - and Simmo's impression of her - was hurt.